Pennsylvania’s General Veil-Piercing Standard Pennsylvania strongly presumes that corporations and LLCs are separate legal entities, meaning, the entity generally protects the owners of the entity from personal liability. Courts “pierce the corporate veil” only in limited circumstances and only “whenever justice or public policy demand.” The doctrine is equitable in…
Update: Gist of the Action & Motion For Summary Judgment Based on Hearsay
Pennsylvania Superior Court Clarifies In a recent non-precedential decision, the Pennsylvania Superior Court revisited two issues that often arise in civil litigation in Pennsylvania: first, when hearsay evidence may nonetheless be considered in opposition to summary judgment, and second, when a plaintiff’s tort claim is barred because the alleged wrongdoing…
The Superior Court’s Reminder About Punitive Damages, Judicial Bias & Waiver
In Richardson v. Parks, No. 414 EDA 2025 (Pa. Super. May 12, 2026) (non-precedential), the Pennsylvania Superior Court delivered a decision that should serve as a cautionary reminder to trial lawyers and litigants alike: preserve issues for appeal, know that the trial judge can act hostile, unfair, or…
PA Law: No Writing Needed to Cancel Home Improvement Contract
Change Your Mind After Signing a Home Improvement Contract? It happens more often than people think. A contractor shows up at your home in Allegheny County. There is a problem—maybe a sewer backup, a cracked pipe, or a roofing issue. You feel pressure to act quickly. So, you sign a contract. …
Binding a Partnership to a Deal: PA Law Update
I. Agreement Formation With a Partnership Under Pennsylvania law, binding a partnership to a contract requires proof of three things: (1) mutual assent, (2) sufficiently definite terms, and (3) consideration. Courts apply an objective theory of contracts, focusing on what the parties said and did—not their later characterizations of…
Anticipatory Repudiation in PA (and CASPA Update)
When One Side Walks Away Early Contracts don’t always fall apart at the end. Sometimes, one party makes it clear—before the work is finished—that they won’t follow through. Pennsylvania law has a doctrine for that situation called anticipatory repudiation. Anticipatory repudiation allows a party to treat a contract as…
Superior Court Affirms Disputed Settlement
When parties walk away from negotiations believing different things, courts face a difficult question: what should they do when one party insists a binding settlement was reached, while the other claims no agreement ever existed—or that a different deal controls? Any time settlement discussions advance far enough that…
Status of FTC Ban
August 20, 2024 UPDATE: As we’ve reported, the Federal Trade Commission has banned enforcement of noncompete agreements in employer-employee contracts. However, the United States Chamber of Commerce and Ryan LLC (a tax advising group) sued the FTC, challenging its authority to ban noncompetes, as only Congress has such power. Click…
Opposing Claims on the Docket For Money: UPDATE
Changes in Allegheny County: Collection of Money Suits It has become increasingly more difficult for defense lawyers in Allegheny County to defend claims for non-payment of alleged credit card debt, which involve breach of contract claims. As of late, more and more Pittsburgh Judges refuse to dismiss lawsuits filed by…
The Senate’s Bill to Ban Work Restriction Clauses
Workforce Mobility Act of 2023 In the United States Senate, a bipartisan group of Senators have reintroduced a bill, titled the “Workforce Mobility Act of 2023.” This would ban the use of non-compete agreements nationwide as a matter of federal statute. This comes after the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s proposed…
